*The homicide of a Baltimore woman has outraged and touched the hearts of many people, including Oprah Winfrey.
The media mogul tweeted that she will “think twice” before giving money to homeless people after Jacquelyn Smith was stabbed to death Saturday once she rolled down her window to give money to a panhandler.
“This story struck my heart,” Winfrey wrote on Twitter on Tuesday, Dec. 4, responding to a story on CNN detailing the death of Smith.
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This story struck my heart. I’ve done this a 1k times. But will think twice before ever doing again. To J.S. family I hope her death gets people “woke” to change! https://t.co/ZbFqkLsdF9
— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) December 4, 2018
Winfrey advised fans to be cautious when giving money to the homeless.
“This story struck my heart,” Winfrey tweeted on Tuesday. “I’ve done this a 1k times. But will think twice before ever doing again. To J.S. family I hope her death gets people ‘woke’ to change!”
Baltimore Mayor Catherine E. Pugh also urged residents to be cautious.
“While crime is trending down in our City, one life lost is one life too many. This is a terrible tragedy for the Smith family and our hearts go out to them,” she said. “We are deploying all available resources within our Police Department to find and bring to justice those responsible for this senseless act against Mrs. Jacquelyn Smith who merely thought she was helping a person in need.
“Particularly in this season when we are inclined to give to those we perceive to need a helping hand, we urge all to exercise extra judgment and caution.”
According to the CNN report, 52-year-old Jacquelyn Smith was riding in a car with relatives Saturday when they saw a woman carrying what appeared to be a baby. She was holding a sign that read, “Please Help me feed my Baby.”
When Smith handed money out the car window to the woman, a man approached and he first thanked the family for the money, but then tried to grab Smith’s wallet.
“A struggle ensued,” police said, and the man stabbed Smith in the torso before running away with the woman.
Smith died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
A friend of Smith’s, who chose to remain unidentified, spoke about the stabbing to the New York Post. “It just don’t sound right to me. It just don’t sound right, it really doesn’t. But if it did, I can see her doing that. Going in her purse and giving someone some money. Because she’s the type of person who would do that for anybody,” the friend said.
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